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Sinister (2012)
Sinister
This review contains spoilers.
Sinister is one of the best modern horror films I have come across. And like Paranormal Activity and Insidious before it, Sinister is an extremely creepy and spooky horror film. I have seen hundreds of horror films and I very rarely get unnerved by them, (mainly because they are clichéd or remakes), but Sinister was something different.
The story follows Ellison Oswalt (Ethan Hawke), a true crime novelist, who has just moved homes with his family, to begin work on his new book about a missing child and her murdered family. He soon finds super 8 film stored in his attic and upon playing the found footage he reveals several gruesome murders. After watching the footage, Ellison starts to experience strange things happening in his new home. But unknown to the rest of Ellison's family, his new home is where one gruesome murders occurred.
This is not your typical clichéd horror film, from the very start of the film, there is an eerie atmosphere and and uneasy feeling, which only grows as the film plays out. The scare scenes are incredibly tense and unpredictable. The acting is amazing especially from Ethan Hawke, and the characters are portrayed brilliantly. It has a nice steady pace to it, as the story and characters are set up, until the scares begin.
Sinister is definitely my horror film of the year, it has a great script, an amazing cast, unique and unpredictable scares, and a gruesome ending. For horror fans this is a must see.
Resident Evil: Retribution (2012)
Resident Evil : Retribution
Firstly I would just like to say that I am not a hater of these films, I am a huge fan of the resident evil franchise. The first film in the franchise is one of my favourite horror films that I have seen. I was really looking forward to the film, I have watched the trailer quite a few times in anticipation and I was so pleased when it was finally released here in the UK.
I have just returned from the cinema, and for the first time ever with a Resident Evil film, I was left disappointed and bored. The action scenes, we have all see before in the previous films, they were too loud, stupid and seemed rushed in places. The acting was just about bearable, although Milla Jovovich, Michelle Rodriguez and Aryana Engineer did do the best with what they were given. And there was no story whatsoever. The set pieces were all too familiar, Anderson seems to be recycling parts from previous films.
Another aspect of the franchise I am not liking is the constant change to Alice. In the first film she had no powers, then in Apocalypse, Alice was injected with the t-virus giving her superhuman abilities, which constantly evolve throughout the third film, Extinction. Then at the start of Afterlife, her powers are removed by a serum injected by Albert Wesker, making her human again, and now at the end of Retribution, Wesker injects her again with another virus making her superhuman again. It just seems to me that Paul W. S. Anderson is just making the storyline up as he makes these films. The slo-mo scenes were just about watchable in the previous film, but there are far too many of them in this film.
There weren't many aspects of this film that I like, but one of the more positive reasons is the return of the original cast from the first Resident Evil film. It was nice to see Michelle Rodriguez and Colin Salmon return to the franchise, but the idea of them being clones just doesn't make any sense. Another positive were the zombies and the mutants looked really good.
I never normally agree with the critics, the first four Resident Evil films all received negative reviews, but I thoroughly enjoyed all of them. This film, however, is the first that I do agree with the critics. It's wasn't as good as I hoped it was, and maybe this franchise has finally run its course. After this film I don't know if I will watch another Resident Evil film.
Overall this is the weakest film in the franchise. And that is from an avid fan of the previous films.
The Walking Dead (2010)
The Walking Dead
For me, The Walking Dead is one of the best horror TV shows that I have seen in recent years. I am a huge horror fan, and zombies are one of my favourite monsters in the genre. Honestly, they scare the hell out of me, and I am not afraid to say that. Zombies have been the one thing I have been waiting for in a TV show, and although there have been some attempts, like here in the UK with Dead Set, (a zombie outbreak occurs in a fictional Big Brother house leaving the house mates as the only survivors), they haven't been as impressive as this show. The show is based on The Walking Dead comic books produced by Robert Kirkman, which I have only started to read them, and they are incredible. If you enjoy the show, the comics are a must read.
The first season of The Walking Dead is an emotional and terrifying roller-coaster ride. With each episode there is incredible acting, superb special effects, a nicely paced plot and some extremely horrifying scenes. And with each episode there have been some incredible zombie moments that are on par with some of the best zombie film I have come across. The zombies have a pace similar to the first zombie you see in George A Romero's Night Of The Living Dead, and the opening scene of the very first episode, where Rick Grimes wakes up in the midst of an apocalypse, resembles the initial scenes in 28 Days Later.
The quality of the first season of The Walking Dead is remarkable. The acting is outstanding by all the cast, there isn't a weak link at all. The special effects are equally just as good, especially in the zombies and gore. So far, 'Bicycle Girl' has to be the standout zombie of the show, and she is the first zombie we first encounter.
With most feature films of this genre, there are always unanswered questions as to what happens after the film ends. Do the survivors find a cure? Do they eventually die, or even turn into the undead? What happens next? These are the questions are what Robert Kirkman is trying to answer in the comic book series, and what Frank Darabont is attempting to answer in the TV show. This is what really appealed to me, and has kept me grip to the screen throughout the first series.
Season 2 hasn't been a fast paced as the first season, as they have spent near enough all of season two looking for missing Sophia, who ran off after a horde of zombies trapped the survivors underneath abandoned cars in the very first episode. Episode 5 and 6 have started to get a bit more interesting, so I am not writing this show off yet, unlike most of the negative reviews that I have read. The last episode of 2011 was been one of the most emotional and the best in The Walking Dead series so far. After 6 episodes they finally find missing Sophia in Hershel's barn, and the worst outcome becomes reality when she is revealed as a walker. The last 10 minutes of episode 7 will definitely pull on your heart strings.
I am officially hooked on the show and I can't wait to watch the next episode. I hope the show lasts for quite a while, because I will be watching it for as long as possible.
My Rating 10/10.
Apollo 18 (2011)
Apollo 18
I don't see why this film is so hated. I am a horror fan and i am a huge fan of the found footage horror films, like The Blair Witch Project, Cloverfield, REC and Paranormal Activity. And i have to say that Apollo 18 is another great found footage film. I know that with these films being marketed as real, people expect something different, but as all horror fans know by now, this isn't the case.
You can compare Apollo 18 to nearly all found footage horror films but that doesn't make the horror any less effective, there are some really good scare scenes in Apollo 18 that do make you jump quite a few times, which is something i have experienced since Paranormal Activity. Like Cloverfield the alien creatures are not fully revealed, we only see a few glimpses of the rock like creatures that do resemble crabs or spiders.
The acting is really good by the two cast members, and the storyline is simple but works really well. The tension does build throughout the film, and when they enter the dark shadows of the craters, it becomes unrelenting.
My only downside to the film is that it ended too soon, i believe that they could have ended it in a better way, but i still really enjoyed this film. If you are a fan of The Blair Witch Project, Paranormal Activity, or any other found footage horror film, then give this a try and don't be put off by the negative reviews. It is one of my favourite found footage films that i have seen.
Final Destination 5 (2011)
Final Destination 5
I have just come back from the cinema after watching this film in 3D, and i have to say that it is one of the best horror films that i have seen this year so far. I wasn't the biggest fan of this franchise, after the third film which i found predictable, and the fourth film was a pointless film. So going into this film i was expecting the same old storyline and characters that made the last two films poor.
But I was wrong, Final Destination 5 takes all your expectations from watching the previous films in the franchise and uses them in the film to give an unexpected outcome. The acting is outstanding from all the cast, and the character development is amazing, unlike The Final Destination (2009), you care about the characters after the initial disaster. Another great aspect of the film, is the return of the creepy coroner, played by Tony Todd.
The 3D was incredible, even my dad who was reluctant in going the see the film, enjoyed it. Which was a shock to me, he isn't a horror fan and he hated Scream 4, which i loved. The death scenes were unique and inventive, and unlike the fourth film, the 3D was used to great effect in them. And the ending was the best part of the film, which was another thing i wasn't expecting. I thought i had seen it all in this franchise, but the director did a brilliant job of keeping the film fresh and unpredictable.
I am trying not to give too much away, but to put it in perspective for the franchise it is the second best film, with the first obviously being The Final Destination (2000). The high rating this film has received, it deserves. It is probably the best 3D horror experience i have had, i have seen Resident Evil Afterlife, Piranha 3D, Priest, SAW 3D and My Bloody Valentine, but none of those films were as good as this film. I really did enjoy this film and i was highly entertained. Highly recommended if you are fan of the franchise.
The Final Destination Franchise Rating:
Final Destination (2000) - 10/10 Final Destination 2 (2003) - 8/10 Final Destination 3 (2006) - 6/10 The Final Destination (2009) - 1/10 Final Destination 5 (2011) - 8/10
World of the Dead: The Zombie Diaries (2011)
World Of The Dead: The Zombie Diaries 2
The first Zombie Diaries was a good horror film, unlike most of the reviews i have read for it. The zombies were fairly decent for the budget of the film, the acting was OK and the scares scenes were not too shabby. But as the film progressed, it lost its way. It went from being a found-footage zombie horror to two psychos killing everything in sight, living or dead, which really let the film down. Otherwise it would of been a good watch for a zombie horror fan. I rated the first film 5/10.
World Of The Dead starts 4 months after the initial infection. It starts off at a little girls birthday, were her father goes to check on a noise outside and vanishes. Her mother then tries to find her husband and after hearing her daughter scream, she runs back into the house, up to her room where her daughter is hiding, leaving the door open. Then when the zombies eventually break into the house the mother makes no attempt to close the bedroom door and soon meets her faith. This doesn't hold up much hope for the rest of the film, and that is within the first 5 minutes.
This film doesn't give anything new that was seen in the first film, apart from snow. And because of that the scares scenes are predictable and not very effective. The characters are another let down, you don't feel much for them unlike the first film. The character development is severely lacking, so for the viewer you don't really care who dies and who doesn't. But the acting isn't as awful as most low budget horror films, there is nothing that stands out.
It isn't all bad, the were a few things i liked about the film. There were three characters from the first film which do appear in this film. The demented Goke and Manny, who tortured anything they could get there hands on, and the girl who is seen at the very end of the film wrapped in a blanket, Leanne, who is one of the main characters. The Zombie action that occurs at the army base is probably the best bits of the film.
Overall it is a poor film, it is not as good as the first film, but i didn't expect much from a sequel. Nearly all horror sequels are terrible compared to the first and this is another example. The directors mentioned, on a behind the scenes feature on the DVD, that there could be another sequel in the Zombie Diaries series, if this film does well. Lets hope not!
Srpski film (2010)
A Serbian Film....DON'T WATCH!!!
What ever possessed someone to make a film as disturbing and shocking as this needs to have their head examined. It is the most extremely violent, over-the-top abusive, shocking and disgusting film i have ever seen. I am a horror fan and not a lot of things shock me, but this film did.
This is not a film to enjoy and i don't understand why people are rating this film so highly. There are many scenes i wished i have never seen, one involving the newborn baby scene, which is just sick and depraved, and one involving the rape of a 6-7 year old boy by his father. How anyone can think of filming anything like that is not right in the head in my opinion.
I will not be recommending this film to anyone, the one thing i will do is warn people never to watch this film. And i will certainly never watch this horrible sadistic film ever again.